A G-Man's Journal: A Legendary Career Inside the FBI--From the Kennedy Assassination to the Oklahoma City Bombing

In today's world of media savvy, self-serving and self-gratifying public officials, it is refreshing to read the story of Buck Revell.In his book the notions of character, integrity, and adherence to the rule of law, abound in a lively and anecdotally rich insider's account of a career spanning four decades in the FBI. Revell led investigations into some of recent history's greatest scandals and calamities. From the Savings and Loan scandal, to the question of whether then Vice President Bush's political operatives wired Perot's phone lines, to the Pan Am Flight 103 explosion over Lockerbie, Scotland, to the home grown act of terror in Oklahoma City, A G-man's Journal takes you to the event, and provides an insiders account of the elements at work. While providing invaluable insight for professionals in the fields of investigation and intelligence, this book is an absolute must read for anyone facing ethical decisions under pressure. Anyone from a law enforcement officer to an attorney, to a journalist, to a politican should look to this memoir as evidence that character and integrity count, and are the true human underpinnings for a successful career in any field of public service. Jack Plaxe, Contributing Editor, Journal of Counterterrorism.

In his thirty-year career Revell was involved in most of the major FBI investigations, from the JFK assassination to the bombings at the Atlanta Olympics and the World Trade Center. He offers an insider's knowledge with a balanced perspective on such various matters as Hoover's sex life and the Waco debacle, and is frank enough to acknowledge poor judgement (including the criminal destruction of a key document) in the Ruby Ridge incident. (He does fail to mention, however, Randy Weaver's sizable civil award from the U.S. Government.) The book is engagingly written and provides useful insight into one of our most important institutions. The internal politics of the agency may not be compelling reading for many, but there is plenty of other interesting material for anyone interested in the FBI and federal law enforcement. (The "score" rating is an unfortunately ineradicable feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)

A G-Man's Journal provides the personal side of events of historical significance. Many who have served in law enforcement, intelligence, counterintelligence and the military will recognize people they have known or knew about, and operations they may have had parts in.

In this breathtakingly fascinating book, Oliver "Buck" Revell, who rose to the hightst job in the FBI, gives what is perhaps the most insightful overview of America's war on crime, espionage and terrorism in the last 30 years. It is a story of legendary exploits and munerous encounters with the most hardened criminals and killers, a meteoric rise to the highest levels in the FBI from where for 11 years Revell spearheaded the reorganization and modernization of the Bureau, and directed all criminal and counter-intelligence operations. The unvarnished praise and criticism of the inner workings of the FBI make for both fascinating reading and provide a historical perspective for such controversial issues as congressional corruption (ABSCAM), the Martin Luther King investigation, the paranoia of Hoover's power, the Savings and Loan scandals, American involvement with the Shah of Iran, the PanAm bombing, the COINTELPRO (counter-intelligence program) and BRILAB (labor racketeering) investigations and Branch Davidians among others. The book covers the timespan from the Kennedy assassination to the Oklahoma City bombing. For 11 years, unde rtwo Directors, Revell served as Deputy Director in charge of the Investigations and Counterintelligence Divisions and as FBI representative on the National Security Council. Revell is one of the most highly decorated FBI agents. Revell's foremost accomplishment was in the reorgainzation of the FBI under Director Clarence Kelley, when he helped throw out what he calls "rediculously rigid rules" and slashed the hamstringing bureaucracy. He prioritized organized crime, counter-terrorism, drug trafficking and money laundering and forged ties with Interpol and leading police organizations around the world. A former Marine pilot, Revell describes one heart-breaking predicament when he flew the first helicopter mission searching for a kidnaped young girl, while his own son lay critically ill in the hospital. His superiors urged him to rush to his son's bedside, but, like on many other occasions, Revell asked his wife Sharon to handle the emergency and kept searcning until he found the girl's body in a Kansas field. Although Revell reveals how his career burdened his family life, it only tells in bits and pieces the story of how an extremely dedicated FBI wife had to cope. Revell praises Hoover for forging the premier law enforcement agency in the world while severely criticizing him for his arbitrary and capricious leadership in his latter years. He narrates what Hoover told him about John and Robert Kennedy's orders to bug Maritn Luther King for possible manipulation by Soviet intelligence. He praises Director William Webster for his probity, but laments the unethical stewardship of William Sessions as FBI Director. Revell reveals how upon becoming Director, Louis Freeh packed the uppermost echelons of the FBI with his cronies. Revell is highly critical of Louis Freeh" lea

From cover to cover this wonderfully detailed account of Mr. Revell's tenure with the FBI left little doubt about this man's love for country and family. With intimate insight, not only into the workings of the bureau, but also into the price his family has paid for his years of service, Mr. Revell shares each event and opinion without flinching. A wonderfully candid account of an extraordinary career lived by an extraordinary American. Women who read this book will find a true heroine in Revell's wife, Sharon.